Describing the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector as the Success Story of Gujarat, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani today said there is need to raise the level of MSME products and services to global standards in quality and environment compliance.

Speaking on the third day of the eighth biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit (VGGS-2017) on ‘MSME Clusters Basis of Innovation, Inclusion and Competitiveness’ at the Mahatma Mandir here, he said attempt should be for ‘Zero Defect’ in Quality and Environmental Compliance. The government plans to introduce ‘Plug & Play’ readymade facility.

He said the maximum number of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and (Letters of Intents) at the current Summit are from the MSME sector alone. The Summit provides a platform for MSME to share and exchange ideas. He said that entrepreneurs from Japan, Singapore, China and local entrepreneurs intend to set up Industrial Parks in the Private Sector.

The Chief Minister said that Gujarat has registered 13 per cent growth in the MSME sector during the last six years, as against only 13 per cent at the national level. Over 1.50-crore people are engaged in 20-lakh MSME units in the state, contributing to all round growth of the nation. He said that Gujarat leads with 15 out 25 focus points in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi call for ‘Make in India’. For ‘Skill India’, Gujarat is setting up Centres of Excellence, specialized Skill University and upgrading Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs).

Thanks to the state’s business-friendly policies and incentives, he said, the MSME sector has scaled new heights in the state. They have changed from ‘job-seekers’ to ‘job-givers’. Entrepreneurship is in the DNA of Gujaratis, who have already established a global image through their business acumen and skill. Gujarat is one state where the number of employment seekers is going down.

Union MSME Minister Kalraj Mishra, who specially flew in here to attend the Summit, said that small industries contribute to 31 per cent of India’s total Gross Domestic Product (GDP), producing 6,000 products and providing employment to 11-crore people, rising up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for ‘Make in India’, ‘Skill India’ and ‘Digital India’. The Ministry has initiated preparing Data Bank of new industries, even as their credit limit has been increased from Rs. one crore to Rs. two crore for ‘Ease of Doing Business’. He wished the MSME sector in Gujarat all success in various industries.

Inaugurating the seminar, Deputy Chief Minister Nitinbhai Patel reiterated the government’s commitment to ensure the MSME sector, particularly in pharmaceutical, automobiles and engineering, fulfil the needs of the industry at the same time providing jobs to many.

The dignitaries present at the seminar released a coffee table book on ‘MSME Clusters’. Ten token MoUs were inked on the occasion. Awards in the MSME sector were presented for the best entrepreneur, innovation, excellence, manufacturing, clean technology, next generation, SME leaders, social entrepreneur and Ahmedabad Foundry Cluster Energy Champion.

Rounding up the session, Gujarat’s Chief Secretary J.N. Singh said there is need for providing competitive skill, creating ambient infrastructure for MSME sector to prepare them face global challenges in technological, economic and market penetration.

FICCI CMSME President Sanjay Bhatia and GIDC MD D. Tara also spoke on the occasion.

Prominent among those present on the occasion included Minister of State for Industries Rohitbhai Patel, Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja, Karnataka’s Small Industries Principal Director and China’s MSME Vice-President Melody Meng.